MACHU PICCHU

We took the train from Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu Village (Formally know as Aguas Calientes due to its hot springs). We had spent a long time deliberating on whether we should do a trek for days through the mountains and jungle to reach the ancient Inca Citadel or get the train like normal people. The fact we were now in rainy season was a massive factor in our decision. As we took our seats on the Vistadome service and the rain started, we instantly knew we had made the right choice and kind of hoped we would see some disheartened sodden trekkers on the way to make ourselves feel even better.

The train follows the course of the Urubamba River, cutting through many colossal mountains to reach the lost city. As it happened we had absolutely no chance of finding the lost city as we couldn't even see anything out of the windows. The rain made the panoramic windows steam up to the point where we could have been on the outskirts of Birmingham for all we knew. Before the train got too steamy I did spy a few things out of the windows. Some Inca terraces carved their way up the hillsides, patches of purple corn filled any flat spots on the valley slopes, lots of ominous clouds stealing the mountain tops, a solitary sun flower, pigs, cows and llamas living in harmony, a family huddled under an open sided mud brick barn from the rain, cactus sprouting out the top of mud walls like a natural barbed wire, and a lot of hung up washing that was about to get drenched.

We took the Vistadome service on the way out and the Expedition service on the way back. Both had full windows for easy viewing and both had a pretty naff snack. I don't think it'd be worth paying for the super expensive Hiram Bingham service as it's only a couple of hours and costs around US$330 one way, although we did go past one and it looked amazing inside and everyone was drinking wine.

We were pleasantly surprised when we arrived in Machu Picchu town. It was built over many levels, on both sides of a river and both sides of the train track. It somehow occupies an almost impossible space between a number of tall granite mountains that surround the town. You can't really understand it's layout by looking on a map, but pretty much anywhere you stay will be less than a 10 minute walk to both the train station and the bus stop up to the ruins. We walked around trying to find a a cheap room and after an hour decided upon Salkantay Inn. A private room with a view of the river and a bathroom for 70soles.

After settling in we went for some 'happy hour' beers overlooking the main square and had front row seats for the hoards of selfie taking tourists budging each other out the way in front of the welcome to Machu Picchu sign.

Dinner was a massive let down, it's a town where most people only stay one night and so service or food doesn't need to be particularly good as they won't be getting repeat service. You are hounded outside every restaurant and it starts to get a bit annoying. But our dinner the next night was much better...

We woke up at some ungodly hour to join the bus queue to be up at Machu Picchu for the non existent sunrise. The queue was surprisingly long when we joined at 4.45am, especially as the first bus doesn't run until 5.30am. Still, we were prepared with delicious treats and chatted to a South African chap in the queue. We got on a bus at 5.50am and disembarked at 6.15am then joined the scrum to enter the site. Be warned that the bus journey is very windy with several hairpin bends!

Our first glimpse of Machu Picchu was very atmospheric as the whole site was doused in mist. Different parts of the ruins came into view in the following hour so we started to piece together just how vast the site was. We hoped it would clear throughout the day so that we could fully appreciate the big picture.

We joined an English tour and learned about different parts of the city and Inca history. The word 'Inca' was only used for the King or Empower. So there were only ever 16 Incas. The rest of the civilisation are known as Quechua.

They estimate the city took 90 years to build but it was never finished. It was where the noble people lived, with the commoners living down in Ollantaytambo. Buildings are anti seismic in their design and build, using the interlocking bricks that the inca's are so famous for. They even have 'male' and 'female' interlocking bits on the bricks to further strengthen the structure. The walls tilt inwards from the inside and outside of the building so that they hold strong in earthquakes. There is much evidence that this technique works as the colonial building that were built on top of Inca stonework in Cusco were destroyed in the 1950 earthquake, whilst the much older Inca parts held strong.

We learned that the important buildings such as temples used the traditional Inca stonework, less important buildings such as houses were built with a less labour intensive stone and mortar technique.

The city was built by the Quechua people paying their 'taxes' through labour as there was not a money system. Many people in Peru still speak the Quechua language, however it is still only a spoken language and has not been written down. Historians believe a system of recording important events was done by tying certain knots into ropes but no one has been able to decipher these messages (and I imagine most of the rope must have deteriorated by now!!)

The Quechua people worshipped the sun, stars, moon and earth. The sun being the most important, explaining their obsession with the solstices (the longest and shortest days of the year). On the summer solstice, the sun perfectly lines up with a window in a curved walled building known as the Sun Temple and through the Sun Gate, a gap in between two mountains high above the city. This is also the last section of the Inca trail where trekkers get their first glimpse of the citadel. In the same building there is another window for the winter solstice. Although judging from the weather today, I'm not sure that the sun would make an appearance most years!

After the tour we climbed Machu Picchu mountain rising up 3082 meters into the clouds. Not Huayna Picchu as that was sold out. It took 1.5 hours to climb and was bloody steep and bloody hairy in places. Our tour guide had told us of the unlucky fate of a German tourist who had jumped to take a photograph and fallen from the top last year. I believe his words were 'his head was destroyed' so we were very wary on the narrow parts, no one wants a destroyed head do they. Nowadays you have to sign in and out on these treks to accept responsibility for whatever happens to you up there. It was a difficult climb but every few minutes you could turn back to catch a glimpse of the city getting smaller and smaller the higher you ascended.

When we got to the top the whole of the citadel was covered by mist and fog. We decided to wait it out, and after about 45 minutes and a terrific cheese and avocado sandwich, we were rewarded with a terrific view. We also realised just how flipping high up we were.

Back down from the clouds we visited the guards hut, from where you get the 'postcard view' of Machu Picchu. It was fabulous, with the stone buildings and terraces stretching away from you. You could also appreciate just how steep the terraces were and what a feat it was to have built something like this on such steep terrain. The scale of the place was huge and we couldn't imagine how many workers it must have taken to build it.

We also learned some details on the buildings, such as the stone protrusions onto which the wooden frame work of the roof could be attached. Park management had reconstructed roofs on some of the buildings to show how it would have looked and the techniques used. The wood would have been tied onto the house using llama skin, then thatching would have been attached on top.

Then there was this Sundial thing. We didn't completely understand this but it was a giant carved rock with corners pointing North, East, South and West.

We took the short walk to the Inca bridge which was straight out of Lord of the Rings. An impossibly thin brick path clinging to the sheer rocky mountain side awaited us. Luckily it was fenced off so we didn't have to play Rock Paper Scissors as to who would dare go over first. The middle section looked like it had collapsed in and so was bridged by rickety planks of wood. What was even more fascinating was where the hell did this path go? It just sort of fizzled out and we traced a possible path along the vertical mountain side. Either way it wouldn't have been a fun walk, and I felt sorry for any Inca that had walked that way with a heavy load to carry.

With a few hours left in the citadel we decided to retrace our steps and get a better look at things we may have missed during the tour. We also got friendly with a bunch of llamas who were just hanging out.

It was completely different to the mornings walk as by this time the fog had completely lifted and the crowds had all but gone. Whilst the morning seemed full of backpackers and local tourists, the afternoon crowd were older Brits and Americans on guided tours. We listened in to a couple of them and their guide quality was much better than ours and seemed less rushed. We got a few free facts then carried on.

We were spent by the time it was time to leave. We jumped on the bus and were back down to the town in no time. It had started raining so we dashed into the nearest bar for a beer and to take in all we'd seen that day. It was a dream come true to see Machu Picchu, and despite the crowds is a must must see. I couldn't decide how it compared with Anchor Watt in Cambodia... both have such fantastic stone work that seemed so ahead of their time. Both are vast and atmospheric and otherworldly... Go to both!!

For dinner that night we were determined to have a good meal and beat the tourist trap system! We walked around town and finally decided on a place that seemed full of locals. It was cheap and their speciality was barbecued chicken. Will ordered a quarter chicken that would have been enough for both of us with all the trimmings. I had a brilliant Chinese style chicken dish with rice and a wanton soup thrown in for free that was really tasty with lots of ginger yum. We didn't get the name of the place, but it is on both sides of the upper most bridge in town, on the Machu Picchu bus stop side of the river.

The next day we caught the 8.53am train back to Ollantaytambo to have a wander.

Tips!

- The site is a one way circuit and once you have finished you must exit and re-enter. You are only allowed to enter three times on your ticket and they stamp it. There are no toilets inside the site, so time your exits and toilet breaks carefully!

- Bring plenty of water, it gets hot throughout the day and you can only buy water once you exit the site. I would say you need 1.5 - 2 litres each as there's some pretty strenuous stair climbing to be done

- Take your own food as it's crazy expensive but don't eat it in view of a guard as they blow their whistle at you and tell you no food.

- Get a tour guide later on in the day - we were lumped in with maybe 20 people at 7am, but at 3pm we saw people with much smaller groups or even on their own with a guide.

- The guides with 'University of Cusco' jackets seemed to speak the best English but I'm not sure if they have to be booked in advance or not.

- Take the bus, don't walk up - it takes 1.5 hours apparently and will seriously tire you out. You'll need all that energy for the long day ahead!

- Don't look down when you're on the bus - the road is crazy steep with about 12 hairpin bends and is not for the faint hearted!

- The bus queue is always long. When we left town at 8am the following day, the queue was just as long as when we were there at 5am. I would recommend being in the site for as long as possible though to do all the different walks etc, so get up as early as you can, get an early night the night before, and for gods sake, don't be enticed by the 4 for 1 cocktail offers in all the tourist restaurants!

- There are thermal baths a short walk at the top of town. We didn't go but it's something to do on your first night there if you arrive in time.

- Climbing Machu Picchu Mountain vs. Huayna Picchu: because we only climbed Machu Picchu Mountain we can't really compare. The views were unreal from up there but it was bloody strenuous and took up 3.5 hours of our day. I've read reports online that the other climb is shorter but even more scary in places - definitely not for the feint hearted or unfit. There are Inca ruins and temples up there which sound incredible but you have to book your ticket way in advance as only 400 people a day can do it and it's the more popular climb. I guess it depends how far ahead you book your ticket!

- You can trek, train or bus to get to Machu Picchu. We enjoyed the train journey but the bus is definitely the more budget option, I saw companies in town advertising the trip for US$65 where as our return train tickets cost US$125. The classic Inca Trail trek costs around US$600 and must be booked 6 months in advance.